On draught at Bite Burger. I was surprised by the appearance of this beer, deep black with a tan head that lasted the entire pint and left a lot of lacing; kudos! The nose and taste also let one know they were drinking a black IPA with nice roasted characteristics but with a standard bittering hop only profile. A solid beer that flies a bit under the radar given the brewery.

Veritable black IPA. Really enjoyed this batch from the brewery bought canned in August from the source. They used Mosaic hops in this one to give it a punchy aggressive hop flavour. Balanced with some roasted malts. Grab as many as you can as its a limited edition brew for 2015.

New winter seasonal from Ottawa-based Kichesippi Beer Company. Sampled from a growler poured at the brewery about an hour ago in an American pint glass.

Pours an almost opaque, steely black with deep, cola-like ruby tinges around the edges of the glass. The tan coloured head is small, but has great retention as a film and collar and it leaves a minor amount of lacing.

Piny hops jump out from the aroma, along with smells of freshly cut grains, toasted malts, a mild red berry smell, a bit of farmyard funk and a sort of lake water tone. The aroma is quite appealing overall, though a slight trace of diacetyl can be noted as well.

The taste has a solid bitterness up front, with a toasted grain and mild chocolate backing. The toasted character becomes more prevalent on the tongue, the chocolate taste gets darker and then another wave of bitterness comes through in the finish.

The mouthfeel is surprisingly thin and the carbonation is rather low, but the long-lasting collar creates a nice creamy sensation on the tongue. The roasted and chocolate characteristics get joined by a bitter espresso-like flavour in the aftertaste.

This is a very solid effort from an up and coming Ontario brewery and it's nice to see a representation of the style brewed locally. I'll be sure to have my growler re-filled a few times while the beer is available and I'd like to see the brewery consider bottling it next year.

Tall cans bought at LCBO in Ottawa - I've also had it on tap with similar results. Nearly pitch black, with a nice roasted odour and taste. A great black ale and by far my favourite Kichesippi offering - hoping it becomes a permanent fixture.

473 ml can served cold into a pint glass. Purchased from Fortinos for $2.80 CDN. This version is advertised at 6.0% ABV. packaged Jan 15, 2016.

Appearance - Ominous black color with a tremendous 4 finger brown head. Greta retention on top and loads of lacing left behind too.

Smell - Rather roasty with dark chocolate and especially coffee making an appearance. Some earthy and vaguely citrusy notes, with orange and grapefruit being the most prominent of those. Nose just is't quite as big as I'd expect, but does improve after the head fades away.

Taste - A little burnt coffee flavor and some bitterness, but missing the hop explosion here. Just misses going to that next level that would be a very solid IPA. Taste seems stale, so maybe I will need to procure a fresher sample.

Mouthfeel - Dry finish and chalky mouthfeel was described at least one other reviewer. I couldn't have said it better myself. Carbonation is there, but doesn't seem as expressive as it should.

Overall - Kichesippi's Wuchak Black didn't live up to some reasonably lofty expectations I had, but I am willing to give this one more try and hopefully try a fresher sample as this beer was elderly and tasted like it. Probably worth a shot if you can get a reasonably fresh sample.